Ways to Engage the Faith Community in Your Schools

When Superintendent Peter C. Gorman challenged faith leaders to help him “carry hope and opportunity into every classroom,” he wanted to find a partner for the district’s 11 most challenged schools.

A year and more than 80 new partnerships later, the superintendent of North Carolina’s Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools says he’s amazed by the overwhelming response, which has brought a tidal wave of new mentors, tutors, and volunteers into the district.

“The help of the faith community is essential to the success of our children and our schools,” says Gorman. “We can’t eradicate the social condition of poverty, but we can protect children from its most toxic effects if everyone works together to help kids learn.”